Health tourism: Mandarin Oriental partners with Mayo Clinic

Next year, the Mandarin Oriental in Turkey’s Bodrum will be collaborating with the Mayo Clinic to offer specialist health holidays.

The first partnership of its kind from the US non-profit medical organisation, the Mayo Clinic’s Healthy Living Programme will “combine the research-based medical expertise of Mayo Clinic with Mandarin Oriental’s signature spa treatments and therapies”.

The focus will be on “preventative wellness” and a “balanced lifestyle”. There will be the option of 45-minutes assessments for sleep, stress and posture, as well as weekend and five-day retreats.

Bespoke packages incorporate healthy cuisine, yoga, meditation, Pilates, swimming, tennis and gym work, supported by science-based analyses of fitness, body composition, stress, posture and functional movement. There will, of course, also be massages and time in the hammam.

A press release said: “Wellness coaches work with individuals to design comprehensive, personalised wellness plans based on goals and expectations. On-going support is offered to ensure continued success and sustainability once guests return home.”

Jeremy McCarthy, Mandarin Oriental’s group director of spa, said: “In today’s ever-changing, fast-paced world, expert guidance on how to lead a healthier, more holistic life is the greatest investment one can make. We are delighted to be the first hotel group to collaborate with Mayo Clinic to offer programmes of this kind.”

He added: “The beautiful seascape of Bodrum serves as the perfect backdrop for a truly results-oriented wellness retreat.”

Paul Limburg, medical director of Mayo Clinic Global Business Solutions, said: “Wellness is central to improving quality of life and preventing many of the most common diseases. We think this collaboration with the Mandarin Oriental, Bodrum, will provide guests with a unique, useful, and relaxing way to learn about evidence-based wellness practices.”

The five-day programme will be available from January 8 to April 30, 2016, at a cost of €950 per person, per night.

The hotel occupies a 60-hectare site on Bodrum peninsula’s Paradise Bay – as well as 109 rooms and suites, it has ten restaurants and bars, two sandy beaches and a 2,700 sqm spa.

The fact that this particular Mandarin Oriental property is taking wellness beyond pampering illustrates the growing trend for health tourism to Turkey.

A September 2015 story published on healthnewsnow.com said: “Health-related tourism – which includes medical tourism, thermal, spa and wellness tourism and tourism for the elderly and disabled – has a very high potential for global growth [in Turkey], due to low costs and the necessary highly-skilled.

“In terms of geothermal tourism potential, Turkey is among the top seven countries in the world and ranks first in Europe with its 1,500 thermal springs. Bed capacity in the various thermal spa resorts has reached a combined 55,140, according to the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

“A flurry of new hotel openings and brand hotel investments all over Turkey, not just in major tourism centres such as Antalya, Mugla and Istanbul, will go a long way toward helping the tourism sector meet and exceed its 2023 targets.”

The Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism hopes to welcome 50 million tourists a year by 2023, with associated revenues of US$50 billion annually.